to the non Syracuse fans who live in the 315

[Eric15]

I feel like I’m in a rap video with all these area code references. And based on the area codes the video would probably be filmed in front of a Whole Foods.

 

[AZOrange]

Give me a break. So what duke fans came?

 

[doc05]

smh lol. I grew up downstate -- always rooted for the Cuse over the local Johnnies. since the 80s -- have no upstate or central NY roots whatsoever. Have never heard any St John's fan say I'm some kind of traitor lol.

 

[JLine]

Nothing wrong with rooting for a different team. It’s just the contrarian who does it to be on the other side that are annoying. The people that root against Syracuse more than they root for an actual team. I know too many of these people.

 

[kcsu]

Go Buffs

 

[Orange Barrel]

I live in Villanova's back yard (610, for those keeping track) and have attended more of their home games in the last 28 years than I can count. It's never once occurred to me to root for them. But I am loud and proud pulling for the visiting team in Orange.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

I feel like I’m in a rap video with all these area code references. And based on the area codes the video would probably be filmed in front of a Whole Foods.

Ain't no Whole Foods in the 802.

 

[DaCuse]

i grew up in Florida - packed my bags at age 18 BY MYSELF - moved to SU as it was my dream after watching so many games on ESPN in the 80s (Pearl's shot etc.). Yes - SU had the perfect academic program for me too...

I will always be a fan of SU and the 315...

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

You can live somewhere without it being your "home town." I happen to live within an hour of both BYU and the University of Utah right now, does that mean I have to hop on one of their bandwagons? No thanks.

My guess is that the OP would provide you with a convoluted path to get to SU, disregarding the rules he set out in the OP.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

By the OP logic, no one in Syracuse should be Giants or Jets fans, just the Bills.

 

[EastCoast2]

enfield

Lived in Hartford then Windsor for a few years, recently moved down to the 203.

 

[Eric15]

I’ve lived in Baldwinsville my whole life. Are you saying I HAVE TO be a Yankees/Mets fan?
Cuz I ain’t.

The Blue Jays are the closest to you geographically, actually.

 

[reedny]

i grew up in Florida - packed my bags at age 18 BY MYSELF - moved to SU as it was my dream after watching so many games on ESPN in the 80s (Pearl's shot etc.). Yes - SU had the perfect academic program for me too...

I will always be a fan of SU and the 315...

Your connection makes sense, but I also agree with AZ that Duh-k fans should feel welcome in the Dome regardless. It's NBD, people move all over and root for whoever they want. That said, if you grow up in Rochester and consider SU "secondary" to Duh=k (or ND, etc), you might be one of the pseudo-fans this thread is about.

 

[LetsGoOrang]

I live in Durham surrounded by Duke and UNC fans. Originally from Rochester and a SU fan my entire life. My wife is a grad and employee of Duke but I still bleed Orange. I just tell people down here that I hate Duke less than before moving here.

 

[bballbeadle]

I live in Durham surrounded by Duke and UNC fans. Originally from Rochester and a SU fan my entire life. My wife is a grad and employee of Duke but I still bleed Orange. I just tell people down here that I hate Duke less than before moving here.

Where? I used to live on Markham Ave. Don’t you LOVE Durham?? (Although much more congested than when I lived there 72 - 84.)

 

[OrangeDW]

By the OP logic, no one in Syracuse should be Giants or Jets fans, just the Bills.

No. Buffalo is hours away too. They aren’t the home team.

Everyone has a different story. Moving to different cities, where you went to school, etc...that’s a whole different ball game. Pretty clear to me he’s talking about locals with no connections to Duke. Not people who moved here from N.C. Not Duke grads.

It is hard to fathom how someone born and raised in Syracuse, NY or very close by becomes a Duke fan or a Hoya fan.

Some of you are doing too much with this.

That some of you grew up elsewhere(I’m noticing many from large cities - completely different dynamics there), doesn’t change his point. Growing up in Philly or NYC or a place without a major college program nearby is completely different than growing up in a “one horse town”(Buzz was right on that one, sorry).

Someone growing up in Lexington, Kentucky being a fan of someone other than UK. Growing up in Lawrence, Kansas and not being a Jayhawk fan. Growing up in Bloomington, Indiana and not rooting for the Hoosiers.

These smaller cities that have college programs with massive followings - it’s kindve odd when someone grows up there and roots for their rival or a school that everyone else hates.

 

[Townie72]

It has always seemed to me that there were four different Syracuse fan bases.

The first group is the alumni, whether local or not. SU fandom comes with the territory. It’s non-elective unless you have some sort of weird iconoclastic bent.

The second group is the CNY people, who are somehow connected to the University. Their mother went to SU, or their grandfather or their father worked there.

The third group are the locals who root for SU because it’s the local team. It’s almost as though the Syracuse on the jerseys is for the Town and not the University, which they have little connection to. CNY really has no local pro teams, so SU fills that void.

Surprisingly this doesn’t affect all CNYers. When I lived twice in Rochester there were pockets of SU support, but the local papers were unimpressed. There was always this undercurrent of we are better than Syracuse as a place.

The fourth group are random people all over who just decide Syracuse is their team. These people are no different from people in CNY who decide “I’m going to be a Duke fan”

No fan group is superior to one another.

The locals without a direct connection to the University are maybe the largest group of Carrier Dome ticket buyers.

What locals who do not root for SU miss is the cameraderie of it all. They can’t enjoy the feeling the whole place gets when the Orange are on a roll.

For the Sugar Bowl in the 1980s I went to a huge party at a very big house in Canandaigua. The crowd was almost complete composed of Cornell, Colgate, Hamilton College, etc. people all rooting for SU while guzzling white wine.

 

[Cusefan0307]

Root for who you want to just don’t be giant drunk D bags when you come into the dome even if you’re a local.

 

[SBU72]

You live in Syracuse, support your hometown.

Just like the Hoya fans who lived in the cuse during the 80's, get real

Nothing more gets under my skin

I don't understand your instance that if you live in Syracuse you have to support SU b-ball. Now if you said that more students should support the team you would have a better point. What % of the student body go to games? Heck when I went to college, people would wonder why if you didn't go to games consistently!

As for local support, years ago (decades really!) that might make more sense. Local coverage and all. That's how I became a Bill's & Oriole fan. But now with cable/satellite/internet and more population mobility, local sports being top dog is a thing of the past.

 

[tptcuse]

No fan group is superior to one another.
.

Well, Cuse fans ARE superior to UCONN fans. That is a provable fact.

 

[Day2]

Ain't no Whole Foods in the 802.

Because the entire state is a Whole Foods.

And I mean that in a good way.

 

[moqui]

gilly i think you are looking for nonsyracusefan.com

 

[Eric15]

I personally love sporting events where the visiting team has like 5-10% of the crowd. It generally means the game is very important.

 

[ForCuseSake]

It has always seemed to me that there were four different Syracuse fan bases.

The first group is the alumni, whether local or not. SU fandom comes with the territory. It’s non-elective unless you have some sort of weird iconoclastic bent.

The second group is the CNY people, who are somehow connected to the University. Their mother went to SU, or their grandfather or their father worked there.

The third group are the locals who root for SU because it’s the local team. It’s almost as though the Syracuse on the jerseys is for the Town and not the University, which they have little connection to. CNY really has no local pro teams, so SU fills that void.

Surprisingly this doesn’t affect all CNYers. When I lived twice in Rochester there were pockets of SU support, but the local papers were unimpressed. There was always this undercurrent of we are better than Syracuse as a place.

The fourth group are random people all over who just decide Syracuse is their team. These people are no different from people in CNY who decide “I’m going to be a Duke fan”

No fan group is superior to one another.

The locals without a direct connection to the University are maybe the largest group of Carrier Dome ticket buyers.

What locals who do not root for SU miss is the cameraderie of it all. They can’t enjoy the feeling the whole place gets when the Orange are on a roll.

For the Sugar Bowl in the 1980s I went to a huge party at a very big house in Canandaigua. The crowd was almost complete composed of Cornell, Colgate, Hamilton College, etc. people all rooting for SU while guzzling white wine.

Townie your street cred is taking a big hit with that last paragraph.

No man using Al Swearengen for an avatar should ever admit to attending a party at a big house in Canandaigua surrounded by folks guzzling white wine. (I can just imagine everyone's pinky raised with each sip)

All kidding aside, you might recall from your days in Rochester that it's considered WNY, not CNY. As a current resident of that area, and one who grew up in Syracuse, the line of demarcation between WNY and CNY lies somewhere in Wayne County (perhaps Lyons?) depending on which town is discussed and how many Darwin Award nominations earned.

 

[Eric15]

The locals without a direct connection to the University are maybe the largest group of Carrier Dome ticket buyers.

This is entirely anecdotal and just my personal observation, but I probably know a couple hundred people in Central New York (friends, relatives, former co-workers, etc.) who are season ticket holders, and I would estimate 10% absolute tops attended SU -- probably closer to 5%.

I agree with your overall post, and would argue that locals who did not attend SU are probably by far the largest group of ticket buyers.